Integrated marketing has taken a big jump forward this year, as seen in the tips, presentations and awards at the big LERN conference in Baltimore. It is one of the top three stories coming out of the conference. Here are some of the things going on in the field:
-Brochure – Web one-two punch. The brochure and web site are now firmly joined hand-in-hand as the big one-two punch in generating registrations. Both are moving to complement each other.
-Marketing mix more sophisticated. The marketing mix is getting more sophisticated and well developed, as programs are pursuing a variety of different social media, experimenting with follow-me ads, keeping up their emails, and utilizing both traditional marketing and digital marketing avenues.
-More data collected and analyzed. We have never seen such extensive data collected and analyzed by successful programs as we have seen just in the past 12 months.
-Brochure elimination idea gone. Only 13 people showed up for the session on Why You Should Keep Your Brochure, demonstrating that programs are strengthening their print brochure, which brings in around 70% of registrations for programs.
-Facebook Ads work. A number of programs are reporting success with Facebook Ads, spending relatively low dollars on them and getting pretty good returns, as high as 50:1 ROI. Members: check out our exclusive latest practical how-to tips from the LERN conference in the LERN Club.
The image for this story comes from award winning Recreation Services Department, City of Vaughn, Ontario, Canada. They won an award at this year’s LERN conference for their integrated marketing.